Thursday, June 23, 2005

103 Year old Piano Player


Jimmy Woolsey was a fixture in Sussex County, NJ for many years. He played the piano at the Walpack Inn and then at the Bella Vita Restaurant. I met him when he was 85 years old and I was lost on my first trip into the Walpack Valley. This film was made when he was 103. He died later that year. More about him and how to get a DVD of him playing this session (and his interview) is available at Buzz Creek. In the interview on the DVD he explains he was an Army veteran of WWI and a Navy veteran of WWII. There are a dozen songs on the DVD. What a Life!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Awesome for someone of that age. God sure smiled on him!

Anonymous said...

I agree, AWESOME for any age at that I must say. Beautiful music god bleess him!

Anonymous said...

I knew Jimmy and drove him around the hills of Susex County for at least 3 years , pratically every day.He lived a musician's life every day I knew him. He smoked 2 packs of cigeretts a day and drank at least a quart of whiskey. Younger men found it hard to keep up with him, even till the last days of his life!

He once shared with me his secret to a long life...he said
"Ya drink only the finest wood barreled aged whiskey, and add no ice! and no water" he belived as his father told him that "If ya added ice or water the body would be fooled and accept the drink and it would kill Ya!'
A few years later I was doing a interview with a holistic Doctor who explaind that the body had a coding system and if water or ice was mixed with a noxious substance ( like Whiskey)the body would take it in and it would have a horrible effect upon the liver and kidneys.
but as Jimmy said that if "drank alone the body would squirt it right out"....
he was a amazing person and I enjoyed every moment we had together!
Ralph Drake
host of the Rough Draft Freeform Radio Program
Monday Nights 9:30 pm untill midnight on www.homegrownradionj.com
and tuesday afternoons 3 untill 5 pm on www.wdvrfm.org and 89.7/91.9fm
Flemmingtom/Trenton/Princeton,
New Jersey
email:Freeformradio@Juno.com